Just before the crane operator can move me back to the start, I kick my leg out and flip the pretzel up in the air, catching it between my calves. To cover my bases, I wrap my legs and arms around the toy.
“I’m not taking any more chances!” I call out.
Hazel cheers me on from the edge of the pool. I ask the crane operator to bring me to her. I drop the soft pretzel in her arms from above, lowering just enough so I can kiss her midair.
“You won!” Hazel says, hugging the plush toy.
It’s hard to ignore the fact that I’m strapped into a harness over an arcade game come to life. Yet all I care about right now is Hazel. She doesn’t just say everything will be better. She makes it better. I take in her delighted expression, bright eyes, and wide-cheeked smile, and more than anything I’ve ever known before, I know this: Love was my real windfall.
“I really did,” I say, hovering in front of her, my calves sinking into the pit balls. “Thank you for this. For everything.”
Hazel sneaks in one last kiss. “You worked so hard to get to tonight. It was time for some fun.”
A line has already formed with Gloria at the front of it. I’m taken back to the start for everyone else to have a turn.
While that’s happening, Suze brings out trays of milkshakes, pizza, and waffle fries for everyone who’s waiting. It’s after 11:00 p.m., but we’ve got the glow of Times Square pouring in on one side and the lights from restaurant and store signs filling in the other. Our evening is soundtracked by the noises of the city: taxis honking, crowds of people brushing past each other, chatter from nearby bars, and the songs of Miles Davis played by a saxophonist on the street corner.
A month and a half ago, I would’ve chalked up a night like this to me being lucky. If I’m honest, that feeling is still there, just a little. To exist at the same time as Hazel, to live in the same city as her. There’s a little bit of luck there.
The rest of this, though? It feels earned.
While the cast and crew mingle and celebrate tonight, I get a moment alone with Hazel. We sit next to each other in one of the seats outside the pizzeria, facing the ball pit.
“I saw your win. I’m adding a tally,” Suze says, meeting us at our table.
“I’ll add it to the tracker,” Hazel says playfully. “The positive column will finally get a tally.”
Suze hands us chocolate milkshakes. “Finally got the machine fixed. Sorry that took so long.”
“It’s right on time,” I say as Hazel and I clink glasses.
“I’m loving this look on you,” I tell Hazel after a long sip of my milkshake.
“We’re a sight for sore eyes, huh?” she says through a laugh as she runs her hands down her turquoise and yellow top. “It was my mom’s. She had a whole box of them, and I had forgotten.” She smiles, and I can tell this discovery made her very happy. “I figured if I was surprising you with this, I might as well go all in.”
Could I have predicted that it’d be Hazel giving me a run for my money for most colorful clothing? Never. Guess the future has surprises up its sleeve, too.
“This must’ve taken you weeks to plan,” I say.
“I only came up with it a few days ago,” she admits. “I didn’t have much time to think it through.”
“A spur-of-the-moment human crane machine. Impressive.”
Hazel gives me a knowing look. “Sometimes impulsivity can lead to the very best things.”
“Like you,” I say.
“You took my line.” She takes her first sip of milkshake, her eyes widening when she does. “Okay, you were right. That’s the best in the city.”
I laugh. “So glad you’re in the know now. You want to know something else?” I ask. “I normally don’t walk Toffee when there’s even the slightest chance of rain, but I stayed later at work that day and felt guilty that he didn’t get his daily fresh air. I took him out without looking at the forecast.” I gesture between us. “So two impulsive decisions led to this.”
Hazel grins. “A lot more than two impulsive decisions led to this.” She takes another sip. “Being open to the unknown, my world has been better for it. I don’t know… Maybe doing things on a whim is just as important as the things you plan out. The things you can control. Life feels a little more serendipitous in a way.”
“Like in a lucky kind of way?”
“I meant it more, like, fortuitous,” she says, cutting herself off with a shake of the head. “No. Wait. Like in an unexpected kind of way.”
“Unexpected, huh? Are you also changing your tune on fortune tellers?”
